Notes and Essays -- John Brown

From Quora received May 19 Elena Gold  ·  Follow Wrote a book about Russia-Ukraine war; see also, " What do you think about Elena Gold’s posts on Quora?" What is going on with the war in Russia is decided in Zelenskyy’s office—and the developments are happening at staggering pace. Not only Moscow is now in reach for the Ukrainian cruise missiles and drones, they also have missile-carrying drones at the front (with cluster munitions, to inflict maximum damage to the Russian personnel.) Zelenskyy just announced that he approved more “special operations” on the territory of Russia: the operations will likely target Russia’s military targets, weapon depots and factories, oil storage and refining facilities, military logistics, and the infrastructure that enables the Russian government to continue the war. The Ukrainian defence ministry announced that they have tested new Ukraine-designed glide bombs that can be dropped from aircraft tens of miles away from the front line, carryi...

After invading more than four years ago, Moscow has usually been the one causing ecological disaster. But Kyiv’s strikes, intended to cut into the Kremlin’s oil revenue, have flipped the script. A satellite image from the aerial mapping company Vantor of a Russian oil facility in Tuapse, Russia, after Ukrainian drone attacks in April. Credit... Vantor, via Reuters By Nataliya Vasilyeva and Alina Lobzina The New York Times , May 19, 2026, 5:02 a.m. ET; original article contains numerous links; see also Yevgeny Vitishko, who lives in the Russian town of Tuapse, always wears white shirts. But the day a local oil refinery caught fire after a Ukrainian drone strike, he thought that would not be a good idea. “I could see droplets of oil and soot on my clothes,” said Mr. Vitishko, 52, a prominent environmental activist. “The smell was so strong. It’s like you’re standing next to an exhaust pipe.” An ecological disaster is unfolding in Tuapse, a resort town and port on the Black Sea. Four dr...